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uppity

 - 4 dictionary results

up⋅pi⋅ty

  [uhp-i-tee]
Use uppity in a Sentence
–adjective Informal.
1. affecting an attitude of inflated self-esteem; haughty; snobbish.
2. rebelliously self-assertive; not inclined to be tractable or deferential.
Origin:
1875–80, Americanism; prob. up + -ity, extended form of -y 1 ; cf. pernickety

Related forms:
up⋅pi⋅ty⋅ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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up·pi·ty   (ŭp'ĭ-tē)   
adj.   Informal
Taking liberties or assuming airs beyond one's station; presumptuous: "was getting a little uppity and needed to be slapped down" (New York Times).

[From up.]
up'pi·ty·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary
uppity [ˈəpədi]

  1. mod.
    haughty. (Folksy.) : Why is she so uppity?
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

uppity 
1880, from up; originally used by blacks of other blacks felt to be too self-assertive (first recorded use is in "Uncle Remus"). The parallel British variant uppish (1678) originally meant "lavish;" the sense of "conceited, arrogant" being first recorded 1734.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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